15 Films To Look Forward To In 2015

2015 is here everyone…can you believe it? I can’t, that’s for sure; it always felt to me like 2015 was a far away oasis of goodness for geek culture, something nice to dream about but what wouldn’t come for a long, long time. But low and behold we have arrived in the year 2015, and boy is it stacked with great entertainment in the realm of TV, movies, and video games. Doing my civic duty to assist you through the massive pool of content, I will be spending the next week breaking down the pop culture I’m most looking forward to this year. Let’s jump in and see to films to look forward to in 2015, shall we?

15. The Untitled Seth Rogen/Joseph Gordon Levitt X-Mas Comedy

Release Date: November 25

We know next to nothing about the Seth Rogen/Joseph Gordon Levitt buddy Christmas comedy (not even a title!), but we do know it’s from the director of 50/50, Jonathan Levine, which is certainly enough to get me excited. Add in a great comedic supporting cast of Anthony Mackie, Lizzy Caplan, and Jillian Bell (also, uh, Kanye West), and I’m certainly looking forward to what could end up being a Christmas movie classic. All the pieces are there for one, at least.

14. Ex Machina

Release: April 10

Alex Garland is one of the most creative and talented sci-fi writers out there, penning the scripts for modern genre classics like Sunshine, 28 Days Later, and Never Let Me Go. The writer is making his directorial debut however with Ex Machina, a story of a programmer who is thrown into the world of advanced artificial intelligence involving a robotic woman. I’m a sucker for this theme, and the two leads, Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac, are two of the best young actors out there. If Ex Machina turns out anything like Garland’s previous writing efforts, it will be another great sci-fi for the record books. Here’s the trailer:

Release: March 6

This year was the year of “identical” movies, and 2015 might end up being the year of “artificial intelligence” movies. Just a month before Ex Machina we have Chappie, the third film from director Neil Blomkamp. Usually a film from this director would have a much higher position on this list, but the one two punch of an underwhelming Elysium and a meh trailer lowered this one down the list considerably. But this is still a pretty awesome sounding film if done well, and if Blomkamp can re-tap into that vat of talent that made District 9 so amazing, he may pull this one off yet. At least we can depend on Sharlto Copley being great though, right? Here’s the trailer:

12. Trainwreck

Release: July 17

Judd Apatow’s last feature, This is 40, was a bit of a disappointment, but I don’t think he’s out of the funny business yet; he’s still one of the most talented comedy directors in Hollywood, and his next film, Trainwreck, could end up redeeming him. Why, you ask? Well, the film stars and is written by Amy Schumer, who is quickly becoming one of the most buzzed about comedians around. It also co-stars Bill Hader, which…come on. Bill Hader. We know next to nothing about the film, but the talent alone has me insanely interested in what this comedy could be.

Release: April 3

Look, pull me aside five years ago and tell me the seventh entry in the Fast and Furious franchise would be one of my most anticipated films of 2015, and I would have been likely to slap you in the face. But what can I say? Justin Lin did miracles on this series, and it’s gone from silly B-movie trash to one of the most dependably fun, well produced action film series around. The only reason this isn’t high on the list is because Lin isn’t behind the wheel, opting to go his separate ways from the franchise. Instead James Wan is taking his place, who has done solid horror film work in the last few years. And after the teaser trailer, I’m ready to put my faith in his ability to keep the franchise’s adrenaline fueled action very much alive:

10. The Martian

Release: November 25

Ridley Scott has had a rough few years (his last good film was what, American Gangster?) but even he couldn’t possibly screw up The Martian, based on the apparently brilliant book from Andy Weir. Matt Damon is headlining the story of an astronaut struggling to survive stranded on Mars, and the cast around him (Jessica Chastian, Sean Bean, Kate Mara) are equally compelling. This is a great premise for a film and, if Scott can do anything right now, it’s make a beautiful film. All he needs is a good script backing him up, and the man responsible for this one is none other than Drew Goddard. You know, Cabin in the Wood’s Drew Goddard. This film has no excuse not to be great.

9. Mission: Impossible 5

Release: December 25

Mission: Impossible is one of the few series that gets better as it goes along and the last entry, Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol is one of the absolute best action films of the millennium. I don’t expect MI 5 to match its predecessor in this regard, but I hope director Christopher McQuarrie will be able to still deliver another stellar entry into this spy series. I mean Alec Baldwin is (likely) playing the bad guy! How could that possibly fail?

Release: May 22

Speaking of Ghost Protocol, director Brad Bird decided not to helm Mission: Impossible 5 simply because he wanted to move forward with his own project, the intriguing sci-fi project Tomorrowland. Well the concept of Disney making a film called Tomorrowland might seem cringe worthy initially, the project is actually based on an original idea from Bird, and he worked alongside Damon Lindelof (who can do good work, as The Leftovers proves) to turn it into this film. The teaser was captivating if cryptic, and Brad Bird has literally not made a film anything less than excellent in his career so far. To say I’m optimistic for this one is an understatement. Here’s the trailer: